Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass hosted her first telephone town hall in the position Sept. 26.
The town hall, which was attended by nearly 2,000 people, focused on issues including homelessness, housing and safety, and Bass responded to questions submitted by residents across LA. In the town hall, Bass discussed the progress of her Inside Safe program throughout her first nine months in office. She said the city’s 26 Inside Safe operations have brought 1,500 people off the streets.
[Related: Mayor Karen Bass proposes $1.3 billion to address homelessness in Los Angeles]
Bass also said the high cost of renting motel rooms to house the homeless population is lower than the cost of leaving people on the streets, particularly in unsafe encampments where fires are likely to occur. Bass mentioned that the city is looking for cheaper options than renting motels, including purchasing hotels.
Brian Williams, the deputy mayor of public safety, recognized the recent smash-and-grab robberies in LA and said the mayor, along with the LAPD and other regional agencies, established a smash-and-grab task force in August that has arrested almost 50 people since its launch.
Williams also spoke about the mayor’s new contract to address recruitment and retention within the LAPD following historic lows in LAPD officer staffing.
“The contract that was passed by the city council will go a long way toward increasing the number of recruits that we have coming into the LAPD,” Williams said. “In August, the LAPD said they had … just over 1,000 people who applied, and that was the largest amount of applications in a single month since September of 2020.”
Karren Lane, the deputy mayor of community safety, spoke about Summer Night Lights, a gang reduction and youth development program with locations across LA.
“Through Summer Night Lights, we were able to provide nearly 400 Angelenos, both teens and adults, with (an) employment opportunity,” Lane said. “Not only did we provide employment opportunities, but we really created spaces for communities to come together and build community cohesion.”
Rachel Freeman, the deputy mayor for business and economic development, spoke about small business development, and Randall Winston, the deputy mayor of public works, talked about city services and illegal dumping.
At the end of the town hall, Bass spoke about the Mayor’s Fund, a separate organization created through her office devoted full-time to stopping homelessness.
“I am very happy to say that we’ve gotten 17,000 Angelenos off the street this year who have come inside,” Bass said. “We are addressing homelessness in a comprehensive manner, and the No. 1 thing we have to do is stop people from becoming homeless in the first place.”
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